Without 2 extra cores 2 of those will have to be used by the GPU instead.

Right now you better choice would be the dual core, however if you arn't planning on upgrading within the next 1 1/2 years go with the Q6600.

You sure Crysis will benefit from quad core? Will it benefit MORE than the faster clock speed? If so, I will probably get that, because I am super excited for Crysis and I am waiting for it more than any other game...

Ok, with stock cooling, which would I be better off with even after Overclocking?

Given that few games even utilize two cores, the additional speed of the E6850 would be the way To go, imo. By the time you need 4 cores for gaming, the e6850 will be so old you won't fear trying to hit 5Ghz with it.

You sure Crysis will benefit from quad core? Will it benefit MORE than the faster clock speed? If so, I will probably get that, because I am super excited for Crysis and I am waiting for it more than any other game...

I'm not sure which it would benefit more from, I'm going to assume quad core. However, its to early to tell until the benchmarks are released. The only thing the devs say is "The game will utilize all cores, wether its 4 cores, 8 cores, 16 cores, etc" and "The game will push quad core processors to the limits." Those are some of the quotes i've heard in videos.

I'm not sure which it would benefit more from, I'm going to assume quad core. However, its to early to tell until the benchmarks are released. The only thing the devs say is "The game will utilize all cores, wether its 4 cores, 8 cores, 16 cores, etc" and "The game will push quad core processors to the limits." Those are some of the quotes i've heard in videos.

Hmmm.

Maybe I'll just get the E6850, then sell it and upgrade if I'm not pleased with the abilities of it to run Crysis.

Maybe I'll just get the E6850, then sell it and upgrade if I'm not pleased with the abilities of it to run Crysis.

The most important thing is going to be your graphic card. Lost Planet only uses 16% of my CPU. (3.2gz Quad Core) which was a surprise to me. Most games I play only use 15-25% of my CPU. Infact the only game that I've seen use over 25% is cellfactor.

I think its really depends on when you are willing to upgrade again. Crysis can be ran high/max with a E6600 and 1 8800GTX according to the devs. (That is the platform they use to test the game.)

The most important thing is going to be your graphic card. Lost Planet only uses 16% of my CPU. (3.2gz Quad Core) which was a surprise to me. Most games I play only use 15-25% of my CPU. Infact the only game that I've seen use over 25% is cellfactor.

Interesting... well I'm getting an 8800GTS 320mb, and if it prices go down between now and then I'll get a better one.

AWESOME card if your monitor is 19" or below. Then you can max out. If it's bigger get the 640MB or 2900XT or save more and GTX ... lol duh.

Let me reinforce that. I just got the EVGA 8800GTS320 and it won't let me run Quake4 with maxed settings on my 1920x1080 monitor. It runs smooth with everything but the anti-aliasing, but I want it all, damnit! Good thing I got a "step-up" eligible card from Evga...now to wait 2 months and trade it for a GTX on the cheap!